'The Stranger' was Australia's first locally-produced science fiction television show and one of the first Australian series to be sold overseas
ABC's media release: 'The Stranger' was Australia's first locally-produced science fiction television show and one of the first Australian series to be sold overseas. (Ignore the references to 'Doctor Who'; the only connection they have is that they were both science fiction shows made in the mid-1960s. I suspect that show is name-dropped just to get people's interest.)
I've been watching this show. I'm 5 episodes in, which means I'm up to the last episode of the 1st season, with another 6 episodes in the 2nd season (only 12 eps in total).
It's bad but also good (not in the "so bad it's good" way). The production isn't great: the special effects are low-grade, the sets are ordinary, the acting ranges from hammy to wooden, and the writing is clunky. However, despite all that, I find myself hooked. I want to know what's going to happen next. It's an interesting premise: the remnants of an alien species eking out an existence inside a rocket-equipped moon, having left their home planet after an unspecified ecological disaster, to seek out a new home. The plot is good enough to drag me along with it. It also has historical curiosity value.
I doubt it's available outside of Australia, but here's the streaming link. Be warned: it's very slow-paced to start with. The first episode doesn't even mention aliens, and the second episode only has hints.
To be fair, the original series of Doctor Who had shoddy special effects, terribly low budget sets and costumes, some very hammy/wooden acting, and not that great of writing at times either. That's kind of par for the course when it comes to scifi television of the period IMO. Heck, even The Twilight Zone, which I consider to be an absolute masterpiece of early scifi television was really hit or miss in most of those departments too.
I had never heard of this show, and appreciate this review though. Thanks for making me aware of it, and especially for providing the streaming link too! I will definitely be watching this at some point, since I love old scifi shows, appreciate their historical significance, and honestly don't have much of a problem looking past their (often numerous) shortcomings. :)
You should know it's a very Australian series. It was made by locals, with locals, for locals. Even the sole American character has a very bad American accent, which is a nice change. :)
And it centres around three teenagers because it was made for a younger audience.
I honestly don't know why I'm hooked. On all objective measures, it's a bad show. But, despite the clunky dialogue and bad acting, there's something in the script and plot which keeps me watching.
In short: don't get your expectations too high.
Heh... and duly noted. But I still think it will be interesting to watch regardless, since I have never seen an Aussie TV show from that era, let alone a scifi one.